Not Another Word

Tens of thousands of people were in attendance. The crowd was buzzing. Down on the sidelines the players lined up and faced the center of the field as the grounds crew unfurled the giant flag. The singer stepped to the mic and the crowd rose from their seats in honor of some of our nation’s heroes. It didn’t take long for the cameras to spot backup quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneeling in protest. He later explained that he wanted to see change in the country and that he would continue his protest until he was satisfied.

About two weeks ago every American had a chance to vote for the changes they would like to see in our country. Mr. Kaepernick did not take advantage of this opportunity. ESPN personality Stephen A Smith had this to say about Kaepernick’s actions, “I don’t want to hear another word out of him! To take a stance and offend so many by refusing to honor some of our veterans in the name of change and then to do nothing when the opportunity presents itself? I hope we don’t put our cameras on him again. I hope we don’t give him any more attention. He’s not saying anything worth hearing.”

We can easily understand Smith’s frustrations. But I wonder sometimes if we’re not guilty of the same kind of hypocrisy that Kaepernick has displayed. Voting is not the best way to heal the wounds around us in this country. Showing the love of Christ is the only way to effectively accomplish that goal. When we complain about the state of our country, our schools, our churches, and our families and fail to take any action in an effort to provoke positive change, we are every bit as disrespectful and hypocritical as the backup quarterback in this illustration.